The 14th Anniversary of 9/11/01 *Open Thread*

Here we are, 14 years after the horrific attack perpetrated against our great nation by radical Islamist extremists. In that short amount of time, we have my (former) favorite university, UNC-Chapel Hill, teaching a course to Freshman from the perspective of the TERRORISTS who waged war against us that day while painting us as Imperialists. We have Americans trying to join ISIS. We have beheadings, one of the favored methods of ISIS, going on IN OUR OWN COUNTRY labeled as “workplace violence.” Don’t even get me started on Fort Hood and a host of other Islamist-inspired attacks in our country.

All of these things have happened, and are happening, after the horrendous attacks that took the lives of almost three thousand Americans 14 years ago. Even after this:

It boggles the mind. Absolutely boggles the mind.

That said, there are many of us who remember all too well that fateful day. Many of us remember the horrors, the uncertainty, the anger, the shock, and the sadness.

And we remember the bravery demonstrated by those who brought down Flight 93 in a field outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania rather than allow the terrorists to use it to their evil ends. It is about those brave heroes I wish to focus, not the ISIS-wannabes, or the “intellectual elite” who hate our country so much they promote the very people who attacked us, or the “Black Lives Matter” people who want to kill white people, police officers, and who rail against the “Imperialist” country in which we live (gee, that sounds more like the “intellectual elites” of academia, does it not?).

Brave they were, and fortunately, many people in this country know that to be true as this Miltiary.com article highlights the impact of the Flight 93 Visitors Center:

Gordon Felt knew his brother was sitting directly in front of two of the terrorists who hijacked United Airlines Flight 93.

But it “never really hit me,” Felt said, until he walked through the new, immersive visitor center at the Flight 93 National Memorial. There it was, the seating chart with his sibling’s name on it: Edward Felt, first class, second row.

“It kind of came crashing back,” said Felt, whose brother took part in a passenger revolt that brought the plane down in a southwestern Pennsylvania field. “Those feelings that were always there — the emotion, the anger, the sense of loss — really are drawn back to the surface.”
Sitting on a hill overlooking the crash site near Shanksville, the $26 million visitor center complex will be dedicated and opened to the public on Thursday, one day before the annual 9/11 observances in Pennsylvania, New York and Washington. Victims’ family members got a private tour on Wednesday.

Fourteen years in the making, the center uses photos, video, artifacts and interactive displays to tell the story of Flight 93, the only jetliner among the four commandeered by terrorists that failed to reach its intended target on Sept. 11, 2001. Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers in New York and one slammed into the Pentagon outside Washington. More than 3,000 people died.

“You are seeing an incredible story of heroism, a piece of American history playing out in front of you as you are walking through this exhibit that gives perspective on the day,” said Felt, president of Families of Flight 93.

[…]

Picking up a handset, visitors can listen to recordings of the voice messages that two passengers and a flight attendant left for family members minutes before the plane went down.
“I’m on United 93 and it’s been hijacked by terrorists who say they have a bomb,” passenger Linda Gronlund, calling her sister Elsa, begins matter-of-factly. “Apparently they have flown a couple of planes into the World Trade Center already and it looks like they’re going to take this one down as well.”

She breaks down sobbing: “Mostly I just wanted to say I love you and I’m going to miss you.”

Without a doubt it is an amazing “story of heroism…” It is hard to even imagine the courage, the bravery, the will, of those people who fought the terrorists and stopped them from doing more damage:

[…] Debby Borza, whose daughter, Deora Bodley, 20, was one of the youngest passengers aboard Flight 93, said she hopes the visitor center will inspire.

“The view I come from now is what’s available for the visitors, the difference that it’ll make in their lives, the courage that they’ll find, the fortitude,” she said after touring the site. “They’ll be moved to take on things that they may have thought were only a dream in their lives.” […] (Click here to read the rest.)

Those people on that flight were, and are, heroes to be celebrated and cherished, their sacrifice to save many must be honored. And I hope that it is one that will indeed move people to persevere, to paraphrase Debby Borza from above.

Those brave passengers, those in the World Trade Towers, the numerous first responders, from Firefighters to Police Officers, those in New York City, and those lost at the Pentagon, we remember them all this day. May we never forget what happened that day, may we remember for what this great Nation stands, may we stand with her and not work to tear her down from some misguided notion of appeasement or hate for the land that gave us so much. May we remember the families of those lost, and may we dare to hope that we could be as brave, as courageous, as those who fought the terrorists that day, and the many Armed Service personnel in the days since.

Most of the Syrians we see on the nightly news and on newspaper front pages are not fleeing war-torn Syria. The 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi (whose real name is Alan Shenu) whose heartrending death was broadcast around the world was not fleeing Syria. He’d lived his whole short life in Turkey, where his parents had been living in safety.

The Shenu family, like so many of these refugees, left Turkey on a smugglers’ boat, ultimately trying to reach Canada in pursuit of better economic prospects and a better life.

This distinction is often lost in the coverage of the European “refugee crisis” that is in many respects a migrant crisis. According to the law, never mind morality, we treat refugees differently. Refugees flee for their lives. Migrants make choices.

Even on 9-11 Donald Trump could not behave like a decent human being. He, or his staff, tried to delete this tasteless, adolescent “tweet” but were not completely successful. That being because the big mouth likes to repeat himself. Boorish behavior is nothing new with this man. It’s in his DNA.

‘Forgot to delete this one’: Trump’s attempt to memory hole 2013 tweet coming up short

Rep. Trey Gowdy had this on his Facebook page today: This day is a harrowing reminder there are those who seek to do us harm simply because we are us. We saw this in New York, Washington, DC and Pennsylvania fourteen years ago. And we saw this again in 2012, on the anniversary of September 11th when we lost four of our fellow Americans in Benghazi, Libya. Ambassador Chris Stevens and Sean Smith were diplomats we asked to represent us in a foreign land. Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty were former Navy Seals who continued to serve even after the uniforms were pressed and put away.

Since the creation of the Select Committee, our aim has been straightforward: conduct an investigation that is worthy of the memory of those who died and worthy of the trust of our fellow citizens. Despite the Administration’s obstruction and the attempts by others to distract from the investigation, this Committee has worked hard to uncover all the facts and follow where they lead.

While much outside attention has been paid to the former Secretary, this investigation has never been about her and never will be. It is about our four fellow Americans murdered three years ago, and ensuring we provide answers for their families and loved ones.

And this headline abt UNC-Chapel Hill, “UNC;s ‘Literature of 9/11’ Course Sympathizes With Terrorists, Paints US As ‘Imperialistic,'” it seems too many have already forgotten, never learned, or are twisting it into something it was not for their own ideological needs.

Thursday afternoon Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun advocacy group Everytown for America held a small rally in Washington D.C. in front of the Capitol Building in an effort to shame Congress into passing gun control legislation. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe spoke at the event and brought his armed body guard with him.

“It’s incumbent on all of these candidates, Ted Cruz included, even though he’s currently pressing his lips firmly on Trump’s ass, to call this out and say this isn’t straight talk,” Gage said. “This is rudeness and bad manners and it shouldn’t be condoned. There is an existing problem that women view Republicans as old grouchy white misogynists and we need to do everything we can this cycle to change that; and he’s definitely stopping us in our tracks on that.”

Well said! Taya Kyle was not at all amused by Donald’s sexist, rude attack on Carly, either. She spoke out on “Outnumbered” abt it yesterday. It is abt time his deplorable behavior toward women was confronted. He got away with calling a very smart woman a “bimbo” (Megyn) all because he whined and stamped his feet abt being called on his treatment of women, but this seems to have finally filtered through…

Marge, I’m tired. I know it. I suppose that looking back, none of this actually matters. The GOP has changed the rules (2014) in order to select who shall be the nominee. I have a post coming up tomorrow that has links to the changes made by the GOP as well as an old post that I put up noting the selection of teh won. I always try to be objective, but so much goes on behind our backs that it makes me despondent. I agree with much of what they write here about only having one party.

I actually thought Santorum, Huckabee, Graham and several others would be gone before Perry. I suspect that the brain fart that ended his chances in 2012 also ended them this time. Except for the POS called Trump politics is usually very unforgiving.

Me, too. I thought Perry was making some good speeches, from what very little they showed of him. He seemed more self-assured and all of that, and more poised. But yeah – people seemed unwilling to forgive his responses last time around, despite the fact he must have been in TERRIBLE pain with his back surgery. But hey, his was a long shot anyway.

Oh, and add Gilmore to that, the former Governor who isn’t even making it into either debate. Bless his heart…

The bottom line is that Perry is running against a Bush. This is Texas and everything was okay until Jeb was asked to run. Perry was a decent governor. He never was overkill on the right and let the left have power as well. He should NEVER have done the first run after back surgery.

Good point, mcnorman. I always got the impression that he was a decent guy, and I know he did a lot of good stuff for Texas. And yeah, he really should have waited and not run the last time until he was healthy. Poor guy – I feel for him, but dropping out was the right thing to do.

I just got my weekly update from Sen. Scott. This is what he had to say abt the Iran deal: By not allowing a final vote on the President’s terrible deal with Iran, Senate Democrats are attempting to silence the voice of the American people. The actions of the vast majority of my colleagues on the left show that they are afraid to have a real debate on this incredibly important issue  a deal that puts our national security at risk, endangers the state of Israel and places the future of the entire Middle East in doubt.

Perhaps one of the few Democrats to speak against the deal said it best, when he said, “the very real risk that Iran will not moderate and will, instead, use the agreement to pursue its nefarious goals is too great.” Unfortunately, it appears too many of my colleagues have taken the President’s foreign policy motto to heart, and want to continue leading from behind.

The Senate must return next week and vote on this deal  the stakes are too high for too many.

This is one smart lady. Those who underestimate her do so at their peril. She’s all the things the left tries to pretend Hillary is and isn’t. Smart, gutsy and able to think on her feet. She is also, unlike Trump, incredibly well informed.

No kidding, huh? I thought her response was fantastic, too, and highlights the difference between a mature, grounded, centered person and someone whose main claim to fame seems to be making personal attacks against people.

And when Trump belittles someone’s looks (Fiorina), or diminishes someone’s outstanding credentials (Carson), just what the hell do his followers hear? Do they think he is telling the truth when he belittles and attempts to demean people? Just mind boggling.